Landmark Theatres and Sony Rollout Digital Cinemas

Signaling the arrival of digital cinema to the American mainstream, Landmark Theatres, a 2929 Entertainment company, is raising the curtain on a deal that will outfit the movie chain's properties with Sony's new digital SXRD projectors.

Landmark will begin its digital cinema rollout this summer with six SXRD projectors, and plans to fully enable all of its 59 theaters (covering 22 markets) for digital projection. The new Sony projectors can display images at more than four times the resolution of current high-definition displays.

Landmark Theatres is the nation's largest theater chain devoted exclusively to art and independent film. 2929 Entertainment is a vertically integrated media company co-owned by Todd Wagner and Mark Cuban.

The rollout of digital cinema by Landmark Theatres is part of the company's strategy to produce and distribute high-definition movies through HDNet Films, another of 2929 Entertainment's holdings.

"Digital cinema provides a new experience for theater-goers," Cuban said. "Landmark Theatres will give our customers the best of all digital experiences. Sony's 4K digital projectors allow us to project live concerts and sporting events, ultra high-resolution movies and presentations created using future technologies. Most important, it provides a viewing experience for movies that far exceeds what other theaters are doing today with 2K projectors. We are excited to start to push the envelope in digital cinema with Sony's SXRD technology and see where the technology and experience can take our customers."

The new Sony projectors are the first commercially available "4K" projectors, which offer a 4096 x 2160 pixel resolution and a high contrast ratio. They use a Silicon X-tal Reflective Display (SXRD) imaging device.

"The availability of a 4K projector is a watershed for the digital cinema industry," said John Scarcella, president of Sony Electronics' Broadcast and Business Solutions Company. "Just as Mark and his team revolutionized TV viewing with the launch of HDNet, so too will the installation of these projectors in the Landmark chain revolutionize the digital cinema industry."

Sony has incorporated the specifications and guidelines established by Digital Cinema Initiatives (DCI) into the design of the new projectors to fully support DCI's efforts and provide an enabling technology that will allow the industry to move to a digital environment.

There will be two models of the SXRD projector: a 10,000 ANSI lumen model (SRX-R110); and a 5,000 ANSI lumen model (SRX-R105). The Sony projectors are planned to be available this summer.

About Landmark Theatres Landmark Theatres is the nation's largest theater chain devoted exclusively to art and independent film, with 59 theaters in 22 markets. Landmark is a leader in theater technology and services, providing customers with digital cinema, upscale concessions, on-site DVD sales, specialized merchandise, film festivals, special events and a broad range of programming. Landmark's theaters include historic buildings as well as newly built flagship multiplex theaters across the nation, each devoted to offering outstanding entertainment experiences for moviegoers. Landmark Theatres is owned by Todd Wagner and Mark Cuban's 2929 Entertainment, a diversified media and entertainment company that also owns 100% of Rysher Entertainment and Magnolia Pictures Distribution, an interest in Lions Gate Entertainment; movie production companies 2929 Productions and HDNet Films, and high-definition television networks HDNet and HDNet Movies.